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Nyla Swiftsilver
Personality ~Nyla is a focused woman. She has none of the flighty instincts or whims of many younger people, and she devotes everything she has to whatever task is at hand. And there's always something to do, which she is determined to find; because just sitting around doing nothing drives her crazy. Despite this fervent focus, one would struggle to call anything Nyla does as "wise". It will most likely be done, and with style, but it likely won't be ideal. Yes, she'll capture that bird who stole her coinpurse; but she'll probably flip over a noble's table while doing it. She may be able to seduce that gorgeous patron, but it /will/ turn out to be the daughter of the local crime syndicate boss. Her attitude of loving and living life isn't all she is, because she's different from many party-people in that she does care about those around her. She won't be rude to old people, who always have interesting stories to share, or destroy property just because it's there; somebody worked hard on that. She might overlook it in the heat of the moment, but she'll always regret her mistakes and apologize as best she can as soon as she can. Her active lifestyle is just as much out of necessity as it is genuine passion. If she's left alone, or sleeps alone, she is fraught by nightmares. Words uttered in a mad tongue are whispered through her sleeping lips, as she dreams of the woman who saved her life; and the woman who tried to take it. She's scared of what will happen if she pays too much attention. There's something off about her magic, when compared to other bards, and it shows whenever it's used. It's why she doesn't like to talk about it, or delve into studying her own magic too much. All of these parts of her personality might give the impression that she's just another arrogant teenager. For many purposes, she is. But that's not all she wants to be. For a few of her better traits, Nyla is a skilled musician who writes, sings, and dances all of the songs for her troupe, Wyvernstrings. She's also the negotiator, but for that, she needs Flint whispering in her ear. The last time she didn't, they ended up having to fight off worshipers of Zon-Kuthon armed with their instruments and a nude, stoned Cleric of Shelyn. She still writes back to her parents whenever she can. Camlo and Wren are very thankful for the attention. She is very devoted to her friends, and will always give them a hand or a shoulder to cry on, if they need it. And if she sometimes happens to help out children in need, who cares if it diminishes her image as a badass, daring chick a little? All in all, Nyla's goal in life is to /live/. So far, she's achieved it through performing all over Varisia, but there's always something better or bigger on the horizon, and adventuring is sometimes just what she needs. Wyvernstrings can survive without her for a while, and her companions need breaks more often than her, anyway. Background ~ Nyla was born in the little old town of Biston, where everyone fishes or everyone farms, and never shall the twain meet. Or so they thought. Scandal lit the town for weeks when Camlo Gransa and Wren Lufis were married. Oh, how the crones cried disaster! But, oddly enough, when Camlo and Wren gave birth to the child of a fisherwoman and a farmer boy, there were no disasters, save for the local tanner claiming that one of his hides had came out with the symbol of harlots and adulterers; Calistria. Back then, Nyla was called Cyntia Gransa, but that's one thing she would never tell. All that came of her "mixed heritage" was the fact that she had to do twice as much work as anyone else in the town! There was never a moment to spare for her hobbies, all the other children avoided the "fishfarmer girl", and she was, in a word, bored. Harvest grain, adjust the net, till the grain, pull in the net, and, if she was lucky, perhaps she'd get to watch one of the village dances from afar. It all changed when one very special Dwarf entered Nyla's life. He was named Flint Ironstag, and he was heading to an event being held near Ashwood. Nyla begged and begged the young Dwarven man to let him come with her, to which the charismatic Dwarf conceded. After swearing by his Dwarven Honor to Thomas and Moira that he would not corrupt their poor child, and making Nyla sick at the thought, they departed for Ashwood! As but a fifteen year old girl, Nyla had to stay under Flint's constant supervision. That stopped as soon as they reached Savorsting Littledeath, an event hosted by a sect of Calistria's church to celebrate all things lustful and mischievous. Nyla soon fell in love with the beat of the drums, the pulse of life that filled her with more joy than she had ever had, and even the curiously dressed participants who stirred a certain something in the young woman. When she asked Flint what those were, he laughed and told her "Just your young whims" before encouraging her to leave his side and have fun. Nyla partied for hours, longer than even many of the festival-goers, for her stamina was impressive and she avoided all of the more...adult acts of the Savorsting Littledeath. She eventually needed to take a break. On the edge of the forest, leaning beside a tree, she found it. One person had departed from the festival after her, a young woman in long black boots and carrying a lute. Her gaze was crazed and she was angry at Nyla for something, but before the poor young village girl could try to run or explain herself, the lute had been smashed over her head and she was shoved off of a cliff in Ashwood. To her doom. There was only one thought in Nyla's mind as she crashed into the spiked floor; "I want to live". And something must have heard her call. Her mind passed into a state she can't quite remember. She met with a figure dressed in black with skin the pallor of the dead, scarred and unnatural, who challenged her life thus far. The feminine figure said that her life had been pointless before, endless drudgery, but the festival had given her more life than she had ever had. But it was a fleeting life, the sensations little but passing whispers on the wind, to be forgotten. This woman, whose name Nyla could never remember, promised her a life with meaning. All she would need was the will to take the offer; to claim the life that was hers. Nyla took the offer. She woke up on the next sunrise, in the middle of a field, where Flint stumbled upon her as he rushed back to Biston to apologize profusely for losing sight of the Gransa girl. She stopped the shocked Dwarf and told him that she didn't want to go to Biston; there were places to be and a world to experience. She would send a letter back later, but she would need his help in that moment to get her started on her celebrations. She was alive, and that was something to take advantage of. With that, Nyla set off with Flint all across Varisia. They found two new people willing to join them; an elven sorceress, name of Lightning Parafey, who wanted to share elven music with the world, and a little Halfling lad named Pat Watchback, who was as shaky as a cat on skis. Together, they formed the troupe known as Wyvernstrings, and set about partying all over Varisia. They had a lot of fun from that point on, though, always at the back of Nyla's mind, was the nameless woman who haunted her dreams and gave her curious powers, and the murderer who nobody at Savorsting Littledeath had ever seen... Appearance ~ Nyla's hair is silky and clean, but wild, as it is often left shaggy by whatever she's been spending her last few hours doing, whether it's rocking along with a song, taking down some punk who thinks he's all-that, or spending a lovely alley-dwelling couple of minutes with a hot specimen of whatever town she's in, which is often written on her hand so she doesn't forget. The shaggy mess of hair covers a fairly distinctive face, with prominent chick bones and large blue eyes that express her emotion exquisitely. Her full bottom lip is pierced with a ring, but just one, because she prefers to have relatively few adornments. Why change what's already lookin' good? Despite her attitude, and some views on bards, Nyla dresses fairly conservatively. She wears pretty wraps and robes that keep her well-covered, but are hardly lacking style. They help her tread lightly and make sure that she isn't held up by the extremely tight leather that many adventurers seem to wear. Her mien is something else. Those around her feel the constant buzz of something more on the horizon; a promise in her words and her attitude that they're going to get /something/ done. To most, they don't even notice they've been lifted by it until it's gone; which is either when they leave her presence, or after a rough night for her. Which is always when she sleeps. Why is she in Sandpoint? ~ Nyla is in Sandpoint in order to try to get Wyvernstrings a performance for the Swallowtail Festival. While the rest of her troupe are away in other cities, relaxing from their last series of performances, she has taken it upon herself to travel to the city and try to negotiate so that they can perform. Thus far, she's been unsuccessful in securing any kind of deal, which is in no small part thanks to having nobody wise to advise her. But, she's still hopeful, and even if she fails to secure a position, there are plenty of ways to enjoy the Release. Sorry for the confusion, but are we using the Anniversary Edition of Rise of the Runelords, or the non-Anniversary Edition? My character's Campaign Trait (Eager Performer) is in the former, but not the latter. Please let me know if we are using the latter, so I can find a suitable trait to replace it with. Although I can't actually find the Campaign Traits in the Player's Guide for the latter. :smallredface: Category:Humans Category:Bards